FlyingTalkers By Geoffrey Arend

A LaGuardia Trippe Helped Save A LandmarkIt is always significant when a plan comes together, butalso can be a gift like today, when Christmas & Hanukkah just came early.Last week we were writing about a plan we discovered inworks by the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey to demolish much ofThe Marine Air Terminal (MAT) at LaGuardia You might recall that we saved thatbuilding in 1980 with Tim Peirce LGA Airport General Manager and both of us in1986 were honored with the highest award for Historic Preservation by USSecretary of Transportation Elizabeth H. Dole in Washington DC.So here 39 years later comes word of impeding doom duringanother LGA Airport expansion ,even though MAT is designated a Landmark.

As you read this, we learn that the pioneering Marine Air Terminal (MAT) at LaGuardia Airport, where all scheduled international aviation in New York City took off in 1940, that we as an air cargo publication, if you can believe it, were miraculously lucky enough to save from destruction in 1980, well, the same Marine Air Terminal, i.e. the building that attained Landmark Preservation status, could be in immediate danger of being thoughtlessly altered out of existence by the airport operator The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. This plan, as we read their presser if enacted, endangers the most historically important commercial aviation structure in The United States of America, dating back to the beginnings of international aviation serving our country’s greatest metropolis New York City. Here is what the presser states, reiterating it twice: “The plan calls for replacing the 85-year-old Terminal A to meet demand and continued passenger growth while respecting the building rotunda's landmark status. “A top-to-bottom rebuilding of Terminal A at LaGuardia while preserving the landmark rotunda.” MAT is comprised of a central circular core of two stories with an attic from which a rectangular entrance pavilion and two symmetrically opposed one-story wings project. The presser clearly states the plan is to save the central core and erase the rest of the building? Press Release is clear and dangerous given Port Authority history at MAT since 1948. We are grateful for the opportunity to remind everyone of what the LaGuardia Airport’s operator inflicted upon this pioneering facility in 1952. During 1940-42, Artist James Brooks as part of the WPA Federal Arts program painted the mural titled “Flight” on the upper walls of the MAT lobby. ‘Flight” at 237.5 circular and 12 feet high was the largest work of the WPA program. The Port Authority in 1952-3 in that clean-up program painted over and covered the entire mural with drab grey wall paint. “Flight” remained covered and forgotten, a giant blank wall in a public space and it stayed that way for nearly three decades when, as Air Cargo News, we discovered LaGuardia’s Hidden Art Treasure and devised a plan to bring it back. Now in 2025, it appears, if we read their presser correctly, the Port Authority wants to alter and change the MAT again, this time from the outside, after they had once upon a time, changed it from the inside out when they erased “Flight” from the upper Rotunda walls. Keeping the entire MAT intact, observation decks and all, as it was built in 1939 is in our view essential, and matters to aviation history for one simple reason; here after World War II the MAT served every international flag airline that launched ongoing scheduled aerial service as the one and only scheduled way in and out of the world’s greatest city. MAT was the USA connection to Europe from 1940 until the opening of Idlewild Airport, (now JFK International) in 1948. Airlines from around the world serving New York City and thus the United States of America, operated via this tiny art-deco jewel of a building. BOAC (now British Airways/IAG), Air France, Trans World Airlines, SAS (Scandinavian), American Overseas Airways, Pan American and countless others all began their operations here. Designers of MAT were Delano and Aldrich who also created most of the original LaGuardia Airport that opened in 1939. Worth noting, a few years prior to their LaGuardia Airport effort Delano and Aldrich designed and built the Pan Am Flying boat base at Dinner Key-Coconut Grove, Florida that opened in 1936. Today that Dinner Key Building, sister to the MAT at LGA, remains in full use intact, whilst serving the City of Miami as Miami City Hall.

Inside The Kale Logistics WonderworldWriting for the FlyingTypers is a pretty unique experience.You just need to keep your brain connected and let your imagination run: thepages open up in front of your eyes as though you were in a picture movie.Today our inspiration comes from Rajan Subramanian, Chief Product and Chief AI Officer at Kale Logistics. If you hear his name and you think that he is dealing with AI and all the hottest topics that are on today’s menu in logistics automation, your picture is there: you are directly plunged in the haunting rhythm of the Sorcerer’s Apprentice in Fantasia, the 1940 superb cinematic artwork. I was curious tounderstand how complicated (or simple in fact) is Rajan’s work, delivering top-tier digital products to a vast audience of logistics enterprises. Rajan Subramanian is a strategic and hands-on technology leader with over two decades’ experiencedriving enterprise-scale transformations through innovative digital platforms,unlocking measurable business value with data drive products. He also has deep expertise in data engineering, machine learning and cloud architecture. With due respect the most interesting idea for us is this one: integrating generative AI to transform complex data intoactionable intelligence. Bridging executive strategy with engineeringexecution, Rajan has helped Fortune 500 organizations across fin-tech,healthcare, communications and supply chain evolve into data-driven, API-first enterprises.

“FIATA unites in VIETNAM to advance contemporary logistics”: It isautumn. This is the time when The FIATA World Congress normally takes place; asregular as the change of the season, the FIATA World Congress opened its doorsin Hanoi, Vietnam on October 6th. This is how FIATA introduced the event in itsmost important yearly gathering ..also adding that… “The world is entering ahistoric period of transformation, where global trade and supply chains areopening up unprecedented opportunities while facing equally unprecedentedchallenges.

Been thinking about gargantuan projects abuilding at John F. Kennedy International Airport and already completed at LaGuardia Airport in New York City and have concluded that, while well-intentioned, the JFK opus misses the real point about the airport that serves the comings and goings of people that are mostly international fliers to and from the greatest city in the world. The main roadway in and out of the airport namely The Van Wyck Expressway is an absolute horror show, day and night 24/7 jammed up and jelly tight with traffic of all kinds!

RAP is normally connected with modern music. Not for FIATA members, though, who immediately recognize the acronym with Region Asia Pacific, i.e. the regional assembly of the association members of the region. This group is chaired by Yukki Nugrahawan Hanafi, nominated by the Indonesian association member. One may wonder what has the title to do with the RAP meeting. Well, we asked AI. It came to assist with this explanation: “In the context of wood, ‘tap’ typically refers to the act of creating a threaded hole in wood using a tap tool. This process allows bolts or screws with matching threads to be easily attached and detached. It can also mean making a hole in a tree trunk to extract sap, like in maple syrup production.” The thought process parallel tells you that the recently-concluded FIATA-RAP field meeting at Delhi (May 21-24, 2025) achieved its goals strengthening India’s position in the context of its continental geographic position, putting India on the stage for global dialogue and, more importantly, the fragrant takeaway of the gathering will hopefully spark transformation and engagement with global industry leaders, as it appeared through a series of active discussions on the future of supply chain innovation in the Asia-Pacific region. Partnered by the Air Cargo Agents Association of India (ACAAI), the 2025 FIATA Region Asia Pacific (RAP) event highlighted India’s growing economic significance on the global stage. Speaking on the side-lines of the RAP meet, FIATA President Turgut Erkeskin pointed out India’s importance in global trade. India, he said, had become a major player in the global air cargo market. FIATA’s endeavour was to connect and support members and country-based organisations to boost trade. He noted that India had committed to major investments in infrastructure and policy. The country’s manufacturing and consumption had gone up significantly and that had increased the “demand for the air cargo, particularly for high-value, time-sensitive goods such as electronics, pharmaceuticals and perishables.” However, he also emphasised that there were challenges. Erkeskin mentioned that both Mumbai and Delhi airports were saturated and this has led to “delays in cargo handling and increased costs”. He mentioned that the “state-level regulations can complicate operations for air cargo providers” and all this needed attention. Commending the government for “expanding global routes and improving Customs procedures,” the FIATA president highlighted that these moves went a long way to “boost India’s growing role.”

Those who were in Munich recently for Transport Logistic Munich know that international trade, which is the main engine behind global logistics, is thriving on one side, whilst running its greatest risks at the same time. Clearly some of those in the attendance were not comfortable with the ‘elephant in the room’, others simply ignored it. Fact is trade negotiations 2.0 have started and nobody really knows where they are heading.

I was born in Toledo, Ohio in 1941 to my truly beautiful andloving mother, Eleanor Jane. During wartime with Dad in the Navy, our localsuper business Libbey Owens Glass hired the both of us to pose for a magazinead for their glass brick. The advertising agency’s people put Mom in a DorothyDress (Wizard of Oz, 1939), as it was still on folks’ mind I suppose. Thepicture here tells you the story better than a thousand words. In addition to some money, we obtained several cases of glass brickdelivered to our Toledo home. That brick has moved with us all these years;some of it was installed in our current home as solid basement windows, butthat is not the only place where the shiny bricks managed to get a prominent,luminous function! The bricks’ legacy, which strongly relates to my mother’smemory brings back other recollections, meandering through my feelings toeventually reach my beloved wife Sabiha, the mother of everybody else in myfamily and my strong ally in my work.

Welcome to The Flying Typers Broadcast….Today March into April at jet speed and spend just a couple minutes is a message from our sponsor United Airlines Cargo…….What is United Cargo?Reliable. Fast. Everywhere You Need.From Coast to Coast—and Everywhere in Between.When it comes to domestic air cargo, businesses need apartner with the network, speed, and reliability to keep shipments moving efficiently. United Cargo delivers on all fronts.Our expansive network features seven major hubs, service toover 100 domestic stations, and more than 4,500 daily flights. This means that. whether your cargo is coming from our West Coast hubs in Los Angeles (LAX) andSan Francisco (SFO), connecting through the heartland in Chicago (ORD), Denver (DEN), and Houston (IAH), or heading to the East Coast via Newark (EWR) and Washington Dulles (IAD), every link in the chain is optimized. We pay specialattention to the critical points between hubs ensuring that shipments travel smoothly and reliably from one region to the next.Whether it’s same-day delivery, next-day service, orsomething in between, United Cargo provides the flexibility and efficiency businesses need to stay competitive. With unmatched frequency and capacity, our industry-leading service minimizes delays and offers cost-effective optionsacross our diverse fleet—from widebody to narrowbody flights. United Cargo is proud to be the preferred carrier for domestic cargo, leading the movement ofmovement coast to coast and everywhere in between.Customers First: A Commitment to ServiceAt United Cargo, our mission is simple: Put Customers First,always. Our teams work together to provide creative solutions that meet theunique needs of each business. From dedicated service teams ensuring efficient damage free handling to temperature-sensitive and high-value shipments, everypart of our operation is built with one goal in mind—getting shipments where they need to go, on time and intact.Our dedicated customer care team is available to provideexpert support, ensuring a seamless shipping experience from booking to final delivery. Behind the scenes, our warehouse and operations teams work around the clock to keep shipments moving efficiently. By leveraging the power of unitedcargo.com, customers can access digital tools for booking, tracking, andmanaging shipments with ease.With a focus on reliability, responsiveness, and tailoredlogistics solutions, United Cargo is committed to delivering the best possible service—because when our customers succeed, we succeed. Innovation That Moves Air Cargo ForwardInnovation is at the heart of everything we do. In a rapidlyevolving industry, United Cargo is committed to delivering cutting-edge digital solutions that make air freight faster, smarter, and more efficient. Our investment in enhanced booking platforms,automation, and API integrations are designed to provide our customers with seamless access to capacity and real-time shipment tracking. We’re also expanding into B2B marketplaces, ensuring customers can find and book capacity in just a few clicks. As we continue to modernize our digital infrastructure, we are focused on making shipping with United Cargo easier, more transparent,and more reliable than ever.

Come April 2, U.S. President Donald Trump will becelebrating a “liberating day” because, as he stated, “we’re getting back someof the wealth that very, very foolish Presidents gave away because they had noclue what they were doing.” Is India ready to counter the U.S.’s reciprocal tariffs? As April approaches, the pressing question is not just aboutthe effects of these tariffs, but how to remain protected when PresidentTrump’s reciprocal tariffs take effect on April 2.

Let us start our in-depth consideration of the de minimis regime with a quote published by Ms. Cindy Allen, CEO of Tradeforcemultiplier: “If the option to utilize de minimis was eliminated for goods, large marketplaces may structure the transactions differently for transportation, sale, and entry declaration to reduce costs. They would consolidate the merchandise on one entry per conveyance. They would establish a U.S. based entity, and a U.S. warehouse location, which some of the large online companies have already done. They would then structure the sale to be between the foreign online retailer as the seller, their own U.S. company as the buyer, and the goods would be delivered to the U.S. based warehouse. The sales to the individuals would be considered a domestic transaction as it takes place after the goods have arrived. The regulations state that the seller, buyer and consignee must be reported to U.S. Customs and Border Protection CBP on the transaction. In this scenario the reporting parties would be the foreign marketplace seller, its U.S. company serving as the buyer, and its U.S. warehouse as the consignee recipient. This allows the seller or importer to report the shipment on one entry to CBP, instead of thousands of individual entries. It also reduces the brokerage costs associated with the customs entry.” This is the precise language that emerges from the very careful and thoughtful study provided to us by Cindy Allen.

When Building 260 originally appeared in 1962 at Idlewild Airport Cargo (today JFK) in New York the place heralded a new era for air shippers with all the bells and whistles to advance air cargo to an unheard of new plateau. When that very same building empty and unused for decades bit the dust and was removed a while back, air cargo romantics lamented the final chapter in the the rich history of the pioneering all cargo airline, Seaboard World that bought and paid for the original Building 260 whilst based at JFK from the dawn of modern air cargo until SW disappeared into Flying Tiers Line in 1980 and FTL was swallowed up by Fed EX in 1989. Well what goes around comes around and here and now in 2025 Building 260 that pioneered the first all -cargo SW B747Fs in the history of the world is back and maybe better than ever as Worldwide Flight Services (WFS), advances air cargo handling innovation and sustainability at JFK, opening the first new cargo terminal built at the airport in 30 years. Mike Simpson, Chief Executive Officer, Gateway Services, Americas at WFS, is jubilant: “WFS is proud of its 41 years of service to our customers at New York JFK. Building 260 with 350,000 square feet of floor space marks a new era for WFS and air cargo.” “Building 260 sets new standards for efficiency and safety and is a showpiece not just for JFK’s aviation ecosystem, but to the air cargo industry worldwide."

Dear Hearts & Gentle PeopleHere are a group of people that everyone should know about when the question is asked ,”where in the world does air cargo reach out and help others asking for nothing in return?”.This recent snapshot includes some folks serving on the board of Cargo Human Care (CHC). They are (from left) Dr. Thomas Berger, Gerhard Meyke, Dr. Wolf Cyran, Fokko Doyen, Sieglinde Reinhard, and Arno Pfeiffer.Cargo Human Care was founded in 2007 by Lufthansa Cargo employees in cooperation with doctors from all over Germany.Today and non-stop for nearly 18 years CHC has supported . humanitarian and medical aid projects in Kenya, primarily around the Nairobi area.